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Thursday, July 03, 2003

The All-Star teams will be announced Sunday, and it will be intriguing to see if the strong desire of the hierarchy of Major League Baseball to once again make this a competitive contest -- as opposed to the dreary exhibition it had become -- has been transferred to the players, coaches and managers of the game.

For the first time, the vote of all uniform personnel will be used to determine the roster beyond the starting lineups, which are chosen by the fans.

Baseball has placed unprecedented importance on the All-Star Game by decreeing that the league that wins will have home-field advantage in the World Series. But will the men who supposedly know the level of talent of their peers the best take the game as seriously as Commissioner Bud Selig wants them to take it?

Here in Pittsburgh, we'll know by late Sunday how earnestly the players, coaches and manager have done their homework. Since every team must have a player in the game and since no Pirate will be voted in as a starter, it's up to these enlightened voters to name the team's representative.

The vote should be especially important to National League Manager Dusty Baker, who has a vested interest in winning because his Chicago Cubs could well be the National League World Series representative and, as such, he would like nothing better than playing the first two and, if necessary, the last two games at Wrigley Field.

Which means, if anyone from the Pirates is named to the team ahead of Brian Giles, it will be a point-blank admission that winning is not a first priority.

Giles' selection is a no-brainer. Not only is he the Pirates' best player, but he also is their player most deserving of selection. He's their player who could best help the National League win and thus secure home-field advantage for the Series.

There have been times this season when it looked as if other Pirates would be selected over Giles, who missed almost a month of the season because of injury. First, it was Kenny Lofton, who performed superbly in May. Next, it was Aramis Ramirez, who overcame a terrible start, which had fans calling for his return to the minors, to take over the team lead in RBIs and lift his once-anemic batting average over .300.

But with the selection only days away, both players have all but eliminated themselves. Lofton's numbers plummeted in June, when he batted .220 with a .280 on-base percentage. And it's getting worse. Since June 5, he's batting .167 (12 for 72).

Lofton might be a Baker favorite by virtue of having finished last season as Baker's center fielder with the San Francisco Giants. But he has played himself out of contention.

So has Ramirez, though some might argue that point. Ramirez hit .343 in May and was off to a good start in June. But his average peaked at .309 on June 11. Since then, he's batting .194 (13 for 67). He had one hit in his past 21 at bats going into last night's game with Cincinnati.

The comparison between Ramirez and Giles isn't close. Giles had the edge in every important category. His batting average lead was 25 points, his on-base percentage lead was 110 points and his slugging percentage lead was 79 points. Despite almost 100 fewer at bats, Giles had more home runs. He trailed Ramirez in RBIs, but only because of fewer at bats.

In the offensive statistic that best measures a player's production, OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage), Giles has almost a 200 point advantage over Ramirez.

Although Giles plays left field, a position stocked by some of the National League's best players, he was fourth in OPS among that group, behind Albert Pujols, Barry Bonds and Luis Gonzalez. Ramirez is sixth among third basemen, trailing Mike Lowell, Scott Rolen, Chris Stynes, Aaron Boone and Sean Burroughs.

Giles is among the best defensive left fielders in the league. Ramirez leads all third baseman in errors and is second in the National League.

If the goal is to win the game, Baker should certainly prefer the left-handed hitting Giles, second in the National League in on-base percentage, as a pinch-hitter over Ramirez.

An All-Star manager often bases his selection of reserves on the composition of the roster. It's possible, for example, if there were a shortage of catchers, Jason Kendall might get the call over Giles; Kendall's having an improved year. But that shouldn't happen. Giles should be an All-Star because he's one of the best players in the National League, not because the Pirates must have a representative.